Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN): Conceptializing an ASEAN Model of Regional Integration: A Study on the Likelihood of the Formation of a Southeast Asian Union

Abstract

The thesis entitled Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN): Conceptualizing an ASEAN Model of Regional Integration (A Study on the Likelihood of the Formation of a Southeast Asian Union) contemplates upon the feasibility of the formation of a Southeast Asian Union akin to that of the European Union (EU). Historically and experientially speaking, the EU is currently the most advanced experiment of regional integration and the most encompassing regional organization in terms of international governance and diplomacy, successfully transcending into a supranational entity; a sui generis indeed. Pondering upon the likelihood of the formation of a Southeast Asian Union vis-a-vis the EU model entails the anticipation of parallel potentials and implications in the international community. In an attempt to determine the conceivability of the formation of a Southeast Asian Union, the study adopted three modes of analysis: (1) Historical Analysis [to determine the evolution of the ASEAN and to identify key advancements that were made within its 40-year span]; (2) Comparative Analysis between the EU and the ASEAN [to determine the applicability of the EU model in the formation of a Southeast Asian Union]; and (3) Feasibility Analysis of the Formation of a Southeast Asian Union [to conceptualize an ASEAN model of regional integration).